Football

FOOTBALL HISTORY

Aloysius “Wishy” Kramer began as the first coach in 1924 and later established a football dynasty which spanned 21 years. The first football season consisted of four games, and Kramer relinquished the reigns to Alfred Meier, coming back in the 1929 season. While the Northwestern Parochial Conference was short-lived, Calvert took the final football crown in 1931, recording ten consecutive victories and became the number one scoring team in the state, running up a total of 387 points. Those 10 victories (against just one loss) stood as the most in Calvert history for 49 years. In 1932, the Senecas took the first of five LSN football crowns. Coach Kramer’s teams registered winning seasons in 16 of the 21 years he coached. During the 1946 season, Kramer took over as Athletic Director, and therefore coached the team to just one victory, as Herman Muller took the team to a 5-1-1 mark. The Senecas finished that season 6-1-1. Kramer took the coaching reigns back for the 1947 and 1948 seasons. Kramer finished his distinguished football career with a record of 105-51-7, the winningest coach in Calvert history still to this day. In 1949, Karl “Zip” Zalar took over the football coaching duties for nine years, producing a 8-1 record in 1953. As the 1959-60 school year opened, Calvert became a new member of the SBC. Coach Paul Miletti, with one season under his belt, greeted the SBC with three strong teams which took league titles in 1959, 1961 and 1965. The ‘59 crown was shared with St. Joe while Calvert won the others outright. Coach Miletti’s 1961 squad posted the first undefeated season in Calvert football history, logging a 9-0-1 record and nabbing 19th spot in the state ratings. Their 9 victories was the most at Calvert in 30 years. The second undefeated season came in 1965 when the Senecas posted a 7-0-2 record under Miletti. Gene Nara took over for 2 seasons when Miletti stepped down after the 1967 season, posting a 15-4-1 record. His final season (1969), the Senecas went 8-2 and logged a ranking of 21st in the UPI poll. He was followed by Peter Veneziano for one year and David Hartman for two years, the last of which was the Senecas’ first year back in the SBC. Frank Savarese guided the team in 1973, and Roger “Buzz” Kirkhart began his first season at the helm in 1974. The 1977 season brought the first SBC football crown in 12 years. The Senecas won the SBC again in 1978. In 1979, Calvert once again won the SBC, and went to the playoffs for the first time ever under the new playoff system. After losing in the State Semi-Finals in 1979, the next two seasons were ones for the ages. Kirkhart produced two STATE CHAMPIONSHIPS in 1980 and 1981, and five consecutive SBC titles from 1977 to 1981. The 1980 State Championship team set the record for wins in a season with 11, only to break its own record by winning 12 during the next State Championship season the following year. Kirkhart is responsible for two of the three Calvert High School State Championships in all sports. He also had seven consecutive winnings seasons, the most in history. Kirkhart also overtook “Wishy” Kramer with the best winning percentage in Calvert history (.667). This is still the highest ever. Bob Olwin replaced the legendary Kirkhart in 1985 and produced an MAL title and regional qualifier in 1986, finishing as regional runner-up. Terry Mark took over the reigns in 1989, producing a 7-3 slate in 1991. After six seasons, Mark resigned and Toby Hammond took over in 1995. In 1998, Hammond’s fourth year, the Senecas went 10-0 in the regular season, to become the first undefeated/untied team in Calvert Football history. They won their first MAL title since 1986 (2nd overall), were rated 4th in the AP poll, won the regional title, and reached the final four in the state playoffs, where they lost to eventual state champ Delphos St. John’s. The 1998 Senecas also finished 12-1, tying the record for most wins in a season. Coach Hammond took home the Ohio Division IV Coach of the Year award. In 1999, the Senecas again went 12-1, 10-0 regular season, with a second straight outright MAL Championship. Calvert was ranked #2 in the final AP Poll, before a regional runner-up finish. In 2000, Calvert finished 7-4, won its third straight MAL Championship, and went to the playoffs for the third time in as many years. In 2001, the Senecas finished the season 9-3 and made the playoffs for the fourth straight year. In 2002, Calvert finished the season 10-3, won the MAL title for the fourth time in five seasons, and made it to the regional finals. This was its fifth trip in a row to the playoffs, and tenth appearance in school history. The 10 wins in 2002 also was just the sixth time in school history this feat has been accomplished. Toby Hammond resigned after nine seasons and the following accomplishments: first ever undefeated/untied season, 66-36 record, and 4 of the school’s 5 MAL titles. Pat Herron took over in 2004 for two seasons. Keenan Leichty was hired to replace Herron for the 2006 season. He has guided the Senecas to a 14-16 record in three seasons. Coach Leichty resigned at the end of the 08-09 school year. Jim Kubuske was named head coach for the 2009 season, and the Senecas finished 5-5. Todd Fox took over as Head Coach of Seneca Football in 2010, posting a 4-6 record, and continues in that post today.